Two who died in I-5 collision were siblings

Family ‘destroyed’ by news of deaths

The family of a brother and sister killed in a traffic collision on Interstate 5 Monday are "destroyed" by news of their death, a family member said Tuesday.

Alan J. Poggio, 23, and his sister Lindsay Poggio, 22, both of Shafter, about eight miles northwest of Bakersfield, died in a chain reaction collision Monday afternoon when a truck slammed into a car driven by the sister which, in turn, struck the motorcycle driven by her brother.

"We actually just came back from their home," said Tulio Poggio, a cousin of both siblings. "It's so horrible. It is something you don't want to happen to anybody. It is something that destroys your life."

The extended Poggio family in Shafter, members of the same close family in two separate households, are struggling not only with news of the deaths, but at not having answers to explain the incident.

"I don't know ... about how the accident (occurred). That's something we all asked about," he said, reflecting on discussions members of the two families' households had Tuesday morning.

At about 1:20 p.m., Alan Poggio was standing beside his red Kawasaki Ninja motorcycle on I-5 about 200 yards north of the Balboa Boulevard overpass. His sister, driving a Dodge Neon, was in her car stopped behind him when her car was hit by a pickup truck. The truck, in turn, pushed Poggio's Neon into the concrete K-rail barrier.

The driver of the truck, Ronald R. Benedetti, 50, of Littlerock, was unable to stop and hit the car which hit the motorcyle and Alan Poggio.

Benedetti was treated and released for minor injuries at Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital.

"These were the little ones," he said describing both siblings now deceased.

According to Poggio, Alan and Lindsay had come south from Shafter to find housing for the upcoming school year.

The brother was expected to enroll in computer classes at University of California, Davis. His sister, who he described as an artist, was a returning student at California State University, Northridge.

"They went to pay for a room to rent," he said.

Asked if any charges were being considered in connection with the incident, Sgt. Hill said: "We will probably not know about the (possibility) of charges until we get down the road a little."